Kenya's press coverage

Today like everyday, Kenya's vibrant media is reporting the news. Kenya's news media is not shying away from covering the political crisis affecting the country. the media in Kenya is considered robust, the standard in East Africa. Director of a press watchdog group in Kenya says Kenya's media in recent years has been rightly considered transparent and aggressive but something has changed since last month's elections. He says they have tried to tone down coverage which could trigger more violence. A government ban on live broadcasts has been in effect since the violence began. The director of the watchdog group says it's to keep the many small independent outlets that broadcast in Kenya's many ethnic languages from spreading hate. He says sofar there's no evidence they used language to stoke ethnic tension. He says as a result the opposition has had trouble getting its message out. He admits these are tense times in Kenya, but he says the live broadcast ban is limiting the media. He says images of police brutality are not finding their way onto the screen. He says if people aren't aware of police brutality then there's no pressure on the government to do anything about it. On Friday, he plans to go to court to try to have the ban overturned. Issues of freedom of press are being discussed in media by the likes of Kenya watchdogs, but the issue of security may be more pressing. Photojournalists have been shot at during the violence, and the situation is getting worse says this reporter. Journalists have been robbed and threatened while covering the violence. Many Kenyan journalists worry about their safety but also worry about losing their objectivity and say they're being forced to take sides.

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